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BIOGRAPHY
EASTER ISLANDERS is the brainchild of Andy Lightfoot, an English multi-instrumentalist resident in Hiroshima, Japan. Andy, who has been making original music since the late seventies, started to get involved in the electronic musical revolution around 1993. Previously, his output had been purely guitar-based rock, a genre he still produces under the name of STAVKA .
Brought up on punk, and imbued with the DIY ethic of that movement, he became aware of German pioneers Kraftwerk and was impressed with their ability to marry robotic rhythms to beautiful melodies. A chance meeting with an American friend who wanted to off-load a synth and a sampler provided the opportunity for Andy to make his first attempts at sequencing.
Right from the start, the idea was to avoid any trappings of sub-genre labeling, and just switch on the machines and let the muse direct the proceedings, irrespective of fashions and trends.
In addition, the importance of melody has always been to the fore. It is this element that makes EASTER ISLANDERS stand out from the electronic masses.
After further inspiration from the likes of Aphex Twin and Amon Tobin, Andy had by late 1998 founded his own digital recording facility, Easter Island Studios, from which he proceeded to experiment, eventually producing his first collection of material in 1998 entitled 'Uh...What?!'. This was followed by a companion volume of out-takes and alternative mixes known as 'Chemical Wedding' . In 1999 came the 'Pure Essence of Carsten Meissner' 6-track mini-album. All of these recordings are available for purchase here.
Since then, EASTER ISLANDERS have been on a lengthy hiatus while Andy concentrated on his alt rock projects. However, the recent acquisition of an iMac loaded with Logic Express 9 has inspired him to once more dive into the electronic maelstrom, and we can now confirm that as of January 2010 a new album has emerged...You lucky bastards.
So, how could you describe the EASTER ISLANDERS sound? The songs actually range from 0 bpm atmospheric soundscapes to Kraftwerk-like robotic beats, via up-beat high-tempo numbers, always with a strong emphasis on good melody and harmonic progression. Don't know what I'm talking about? Go here and download some MP3 samples to hear and judge for yourself...